UK estate agents Foxtons sees revenues fall as sales drop

LONDON, May 17 (Reuters) - London-focussed estate agent Foxtons posted a 15 percent drop in first-quarter revenue to 24.5 million pounds ($33 million) as it was hit by lower sales and lettings income.

Foxtons, which was once a symbol of the British capital’s property boom, has warned since as early as 2014 that the once runaway market was cooling as prices fall particularly in the city centre.

The firm, known for its coffee shop-style offices, said revenue from its lettings business had fallen in the first three months of 2018 due to a slow start in January and the timing of Easter but that it had seen an up-tick in April.

“Whilst the sales pipeline has begun to improve it remains below where it was this time last year. The performance of our lettings business improved towards the end of the quarter and throughout April,” it said. ($1 = 0.7375 pounds) (Reporting by Costas Pitas; editing by Kate Holton)